Select

Michigan Car Insurance Tops Most Expensive List

There are plenty of things Michigan residents love about the mitten state. Car insurance rates are not one of them, however. Michigan car insurance is the most expensive in the United States since 2014.

Every year Insure.com releases a list ranking U.S. states and for the past four years, Michigan car insurance topped the list.

In fact, since the website started the list in 2010, Michigan has been in the top three every year.

The reason is a combination of no-fault insurance and unlimited personal injury protection (PIP). The mitten state also holds a 21 percent uninsured rate, driving rates for those with insurance up even higher.

The national average for car insurance in 2017 was $1,318. Michigan car insurance, however, averaged $2,394; an 82 percent increase. Also, Michigan residents are facing another rate increase in coming months.

Michigan Car Insurance Most Expensive Four Years Running

Also in the five most expensive states are Louisiana, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Florida. Louisiana shares Michigan’s uninsured problem, while Connecticut suffers from a high density of vehicles, and expensive ones at that, on the road.

Conversely, Maine boasts the lowest average rates in the United States. The average citizen pays just $864 per year. Many factors play into Maine rates being cheaper than anywhere else.

First, the state is relatively unregulated. The lack of hoops to jump through allow for a great deal of competition and lower rates for the public.

Next, Maine is relatively safe from weather disasters. Sure, there is a fair amount of snow, but no significant weather events that cause mass filings, such as a tornado. Finally, very few residents go without insurance. Less than five percent of Maine’s population goes uninsured.

Joining Maine in the lower end of the pool are Ohio, Idaho, Vermont and North Carolina.

Ohio benefits from one of the most competitive markets in the country. The state has hundreds of options for car insurance.

Idaho, the cheapest of the states in the West, is very rural, driving rates down. Residents also benefit from competition and moderate weather.